For me, this part of the country is synonymous with a history of Native Americans. Not that Native Americans weren't in the east as well, but the stories of their culture and histories seem to paint more of a western landscape. When I think of eastern USA, I think of colonization, battles and the founding of democracy. Since being out here, the references to history and the influence of Native American cultures are abundant. Historic landmarks on the roadside often represent locations of battles with the First People. Prayer cloths are hanging in trees at locations different tribes consider sacred. Buffalo Jumps used by the First People to trap and kill buffalo are now tourist attractions. Names of towns, bodies of water and streets seem to be more descriptive or animal-related rather than last names of people. Occasionally, my route from one place to another has taken me through a reservation. Though they are clearly marked both upon entrance and exiting the reservation, there are not obvious differences. Signs appear in both English and their native language. Some places have the word "Tribal" in them. Gas is not notably more or less expensive. There are still Wal-Marts and McDonalds.
When I looked into my next stop in Riverton, WY, I found out there was a nearby historical site with carvings dating back to 1300-1550. It was off the main route going west from Casper. So far off, in fact, that not only was it on a bumpy dirt road, but my trusty car GPS also eventually stopped showing I was even on a road. The road to Castle Gardens became rural very quick, at intersections the roads didn't even have names or numbers. There was not a single house to be seen. I'm not going to lie when I say, this road was slightly terrifying in that I wondered how easy it would be to get lost out here, turned around. Luckily, I had loaded my phone GPS before it lost signal and it successfully gave me direction all the way to Castle Gardens. (Actually, it told me I was there almost a half mile before I was. I "arrived" in front of an intersection, so I turned and went down the road thinking it led to a parking lot. This was not the right choice which took me a while to figure out. Luckily, it just stopped at a fence and not someone's house.)
As the sun beat down brutally on this fairly unshaded region, I parked my car next to the one other vehicle there and went on the hike. I stopped at each of the petroglyphs. Some of them were subtle enough it was hard to make out the details. They mostly looked like some variation of a circle to me. It did make me wonder if this was the equivalent of carving "Katie was here" or perhaps marking territory as "Katie's room". It could be communicating to others or maybe even journaling animals or plants they witnessed in the area. Could it be just a bored kid, trying to keep their hands busy? I guess we can never truely know the intent behind each carving.
Though the historical carvings were clearly marked (with surrounding fences) there were plenty of other carvings from visitors much more recent. This kind of ruined the specialness for me as there was not much visual difference in some of these carvings from almost a 1000 years ago and "Chad2019".
Comments